US: Deputy SecDef could earn $500K lobbying Pentagonby Lara Jakes, Washington Post January 27th, 2009William J. Lynn, the man nominated to be the Pentagon's second-in-command could make a half-million dollars next month with vested stock he earned as a lobbyist for military contractor Raytheon. This is despite an Obama administration order against "revolving door" lobbyists who become public officials.

US: Concrete contractor cuts deal with prosecutorsby Jaxon Van Derbeken, San Francisco ChronicleJune 1st, 2008Substandard concrete from Ramirez's now-defunct company was poured into a half-mile stretch of the Bay Bridge's rebuilt western approach. Inferior, less-durable material also was used on a retrofit project at the Golden Gate Bridge, a wastewater treatment plant in Burlingame, the new parking garage in Golden Gate Park, the Municipal Railway's Third Street light-rail line and other projects.

US: Holes in the Wall
by Melissa del Bosque, The Texas ObserverFebruary 18th, 2008As the U.S. Department of Homeland Security marches down the Texas border serving condemnation lawsuits to frightened landowners, Brownsville resident Eloisa Tamez, 72, has one simple question. She would like to know why her land is being targeted for destruction by a border wall, while a nearby golf course and resort remain untouched.

US: Protests Greet Nuclear Power Resurgence in US Southby Matthew Cardinale, IPSJanuary 14th, 2008Residents and environmental activists are in a bitter dispute with large U.S. energy corporations and the federal government over the safety of nuclear power, as more than a dozen corporations plan to, or have filed, paperwork to open new nuclear power plants, primarily in the U.S. South.

INDONESIA: Blood boils as mud volcano swallows homesSydney Morning HeraldMay 26th, 2007One year ago this Tuesday, a gas-exploration well part-owned by the Australian mining giant Santos blew, sending a geyser of mud and toxic gas into the air. Nearby villages and factories were flooded, then a big highway and railway were covered, and later East Java's main gas pipeline ruptured.

US: Unwanted Imports: Goods deemed toxic elsewhere shipped to U.S.Associated PressOctober 15th, 2006Destined for American kitchens, planks of birch and poplar plywood are stacked to the ceiling of a cavernous port warehouse. The wood, which arrived in California via a cargo ship, carries two labels: One proclaims "Made in China," while the other warns that it contains formaldehyde, a cancer-causing chemical.

US: Romney: 1,400 Big Dig 'concerns'The Associated PressJuly 18th, 2006Gov. Mitt Romney said Monday that tests showed there are more than 1,400 "items of concern" in a Big Dig connector tunnel where the ceiling collapsed ï¿½ dramatically raising the number of potential troublespots identified by engineers and investigators.

US: Big Dig problems may date back to 1999 by Steve LeBlank, The Associated PressJuly 13th, 2006Contractors knew as early as 1999 that there were problems with some of the bolts attaching massive concrete panels to the ceiling of the Big Dig highway tunnel where a woman was crushed by 12 tons of falling concrete, Massachusetts' attorney general said.

IRAQ: American Faces Charge of Graft for Work in Iraqby James Glanz, New York TimesNovember 17th, 2005In what is expected to be the first of a series of criminal charges against officials and contractors overseeing the rebuilding of Iraq, an American has been charged with paying hundreds of thousands of dollars in bribes and kickbacks to American occupation authorities and their spouses to obtain construction contracts, according to a complaint unsealed late yesterday.

INDONESIA: Construction in Aceh Endangers National Forestsby By Richel Dursin , Asia Times OnlineMarch 9th, 2005A government plan to cut down more trees in one of the largest national parks in Indonesia to help rebuild tsunami-ravaged Aceh has drawn opposition from environmentalists and officials in the country's Forestry Ministry, who claim that the plan could worsen illegal logging in the country.

KENYA: Japan Suspends Funding for Sondu Miriu Damby Jennifer Wanjiru, Environment News ServiceJune 4th, 2001Citing "environmental disruption and corruption" in a letter to the government of Kenya, Japan's Foreign Minister Makiko Tanaka indicated that suspension of funding for the Sondu Miriu hydropower dam project was ''a response to criticism from environmental campaigners and differences between Kenya and Japan over further funding.''

TURKEY: Dam Will Destroy Kurdish Culture, Say CriticsBloombergAugust 16th, 2000A Kurdish human rights lawyer is spearheading an international campaign to block the Turkish government's efforts to build a dam he says will dislodge thousands of Kurds and destroy archeological artifacts.